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The largest amount of money wasted in 2012 could mean a lot of things to a lot of different people. If you have paid any attention to budget
talks and watching where our tax dollars are going to work, you might have some prejudice to areas you feel that the U.S. is “pissing away money." Another clear potential winner of the biggest waste of money in 2012 could be any one of the easing measures that the Fed has done. However, you will always have the supporter who claims our continuous printing and easing after TARP has been a good thing, so I won’t argue that point.

I am here to point out an even more abusive waste of money than both of the above mentioned fouls combined. One that often gets overlooked and never gets any negative publicity (most likely because both parties are equally as guilty). So what is the largest amount of money wasted in 2012? The winner is:

Regardless of your political affiliation, what has this country come to when presidential candidates can hurl out objections about their competitor wasting money on a certain program or government arm, when they are both literally pissing away $1 billion each, just for a shot to run for president. And how does this not infuriate the citizens of America?

Even though we have become immune to large numbers after the Fed decided that printing billions wasn’t as effective as trillions, can you imagine all of the great things Americans could do with $2 billion dollars? Whether if it went towards education, feeding the homeless, or small business grants, I am certain we could find better places to spend it compared to expensive television ads bashing the other opponent. Hearing about Romney not liking Big Bird or paying enough taxes or Obama having fake voters or not born in the U.S. is a complete waste of money and time.
The big question I want to know is if there is a point at which this outrageous campaign spending is considered out of control? It appears each year it gets worse, and with both parties trying to out-do each other in regards to raising money, I am not sure anyone can stop them. And even if there were a federal mandated cap on the amount of campaign funds you could raise, both parties would find ways around it. In fact, they are quite proud of it. A press release came out this week announcing the Obama campaign had raised $181 million in the month of September alone! That is absurd.

Think of how many hungry high school kids we could have put through college on just that one month of campaign money. In my opinion, the entire ordeal is a slap in the face to hardworking middle Americans that always end up paying for the politician’s bad decisions, excessive spending and nothing-to-lose job mentality.

Today, a congressman or congresswoman can serve one term, cost taxpayers millions, help create a deficit, yet still receive a six-figure pension for the rest of his or her life. Why is no one getting angry about this? Do you recall back in the beginning of America’s roots when being a congressman or senator was something you did as second job? It was an extreme honor and you did it mostly because you were proud to
serve your country, not to get a pension and be wreckless with other people’s money.

To summarize, American politicians need to start looking in the mirror before pointing fingers at their opposing party about who is spending too much money, or before they try to make big cuts on a program just so they can continue to get paid well and retain their undeserved pensions. The sad (and ironic) part is that most likely, the top five largest amounts of money wasted in 2012 have to deal with the government and politicians. But at the end of the day, it is tough to argue that $2 billion pissed away just to promote two people (of which only one can be a winner) isn’t the clear winner (or loser, depending on how you look at it).

About the Author

Joe Simonds is the Digital Marketing Maverick for financial advisors and insurance agents. He is the original founder of Annuity Think Tank, Annuity123, and Retirement Income Network, and he currently consults financial advisors on digital marketing practices with his company Advisor Internet Ma... More